Johnson, Bruce IV Raising Stakes in '22

Young Iowa Receivers Expect Big Jump in Year 2

Arland Bruce IV and Keagan Johnson have the same thoughts, just from a different angle.

They want the ball.

The two Iowa wide receivers, coming off a true freshman season which they both made an impact on the Hawkeyes’ offense, want to do more.

And when Charlie Jones left the program in the spring, transferring to Purdue, the departure not only opened opportunities for Bruce and Johnson at wide receiver, but there’s also the openings at punt returner and kick returner that are available.
Bruce wants to return punts, Johnson wants to return kicks.

But they also know there’s competition.

“I’ve got to get that punt returner’s spot, for sure,” Bruce said. “But I know it’s not going to get handed to me. So I’ve got to work.”

“No one’s going to be handed a spot,” Johnson said. “We have a great special teams coach here (in LeVar Woods), which is what you guys know. He wants the best on the field. So I’m sure everybody’s going to be competing for a spot.

“You can’t just call a spot and expect that it’s yours. You’ve got to go out there and practice and prove you can do it.”

Bruce caught 25 passes for 209 yards last season. Johnson had 18 catches for 352 yards.

With Jones (21 catches, 323 yards) and Tyrone Tracy Jr. (15 catches, 106 yards) gone — Tracy, too, transferred to Purdue — Bruce and Johnson, along with Nico Ragaini (26 catches, 331 yards) and others see opportunities on offense.

“It sucks to lose some guys like we did,” Bruce said. “You know, you just have to keep moving forward.”

“You have to move on with this,” Johnson said. “We all have bigger roles, bigger duties. Charlie meant a lot to this team in a lot of aspects. Right now we have to fill those roles.”

Bruce and Johnson, though, feel they can make an impact on special teams as well.
Bruce likes the speed and the chaos of the punt return.

“I think just getting the ball and making a guy miss,” he said. “I think that’s what my strong suit is — just making guys miss in open space. With a kickoff return you’ve got 11 guys coming down the field. Punt return, you only have to make a couple of guys miss and you’re out of there.”

Johnson knows there’s a different kind of chaos with kick returns, having done it in high school.

“What’s unique about returning is it’s just you,” he said. “It’s on you to make a play. There’s no play drawn up. You kind of have to improvise. I think that’s the fun of returning."

Asked what he would rather return, kickoffs or punts, Johnson smiled.

“I would say kicks,” he said. “With the punt, it’s a high ball and you have the odds of getting your head taken off. It might happen.”

It’s a crowded wide receiver room, one with depth even without Jones and Tracy.

“What I like about it is how close we are,” Johnson said. “There’s no egos. When we all get on the field and work, there’s no egos. Everybody’s on a clean slate. It’s not who’s played before, or who’s started before. We just go out there, and we’re looking to get better.”

Bruce and Johnson got a good taste of the game last season. They want bigger roles.
“I’ve been ready since last year,” Bruce said.

“Obviously we lost key players, good players,” Johnson said. “But that just makes others’ roles larger.”